George T. Maniates, 1926-2013

Love of art led to career at ad agencies

March 11, 2013|By Joan Giangrasse Kates, Special to the Tribune

George Maniates (Handout)

Bored with his college engineering classes, George T. Maniates often doodled instead of taking notes.

His lifelong love of art eventually led him to forsake engineering and take a job at a small advertising agency in Chicago. Before long, his talent led him to bigger agencies, where national clients would request him by name, colleagues said.

Mr. Maniates, 86, a former art director and creative director at J. Walter Thompson who retired as a vice president in 1992, died of natural causes Saturday, Feb. 23, in his Glenview home.

While at J. Walter Thompson in Chicago, Mr. Maniates worked on a popular ad campaign for Gillette razor blades that featured actor Telly Savalas and the line, "Who Loves You Baby?" He was given an award by the NAACP for his portrayal of African-American babies for a series of print ads for Gerber Foods.

"I learned from one of the best in the business," said former colleague Bob Ebel, a retired vice president with J. Walter Thompson, who first met Mr. Maniates when they both worked at the Campbell-Ewald ad agency in Chicago. "I learned so much about the process just by looking over his shoulder.

"In an industry where people would have to shout to get attention, George's brilliance and creativity spoke for itself."

Born and raised on Chicago's North Side, Mr. Maniates graduated from Amundsen High School and was in the Navy from 1944 to 1946.

He returned to Chicago and, with the help of the GI Bill, enrolled at the Illinois Institute of Technology and began taking engineering courses.

"He found himself bored, sitting at his desk and constantly doodling," said his daughter Helen.

Mr. Maniates got a job at a small advertising agency in Chicago and began taking courses at the Illinois Institute of Design, American Academy of Art and Ray Vogue School of Commercial Art.

During the late 1960s, Mr. Maniates landed a job at Campbell-Ewald, where he served as an art director for a number of big-name accounts.

"He created a studio and darkroom in our house, and that really helped with his work tremendously," his daughter said. "It allowed him to spend more time at home, and it gave him a chance to teach us a little bit about what he did at the office."

Mr. Maniates left Campbell-Ewald in 1972 to join J. Walter Thompson, where he worked for 20 years on many national advertising campaigns, including Gillette.

"He had a lot of fun on that account," his daughter said. "He and Mr. Savalas got along great."

After retiring, Mr. Maniates went on to become an accomplished watercolorist, whose paintings were exhibited in several juried shows. He also applied his artistic skills at Saints Peter and Paul Greek Orthodox Church in Glenview as co-chairman of the Pantocrator Iconography Project, overseeing the creation of early art depictions of Christ.

"He had an artistic gift that he loved to share with others," his daughter said.

His wife of 55 years, Aileen, died in 2005.

In addition to his daughter, Mr. Maniates is survived by two other daughters, Cynthia and Christina; a sister, Mary Jimenez; and six grandchildren.